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The Glenorchy Educational Charitable Trust has moved to a community-funded model, as Palmerston locals rally to continue the fight to save the Glenorchy Lodge.
The trust was formed in 2011 to take over the running of the lodge, which was acquired by East Otago High School in 1980.
In March this year, the trust determined that "significant" and "large-scale" donations were needed for facility upgrades and the fire safety and renovation fund to ensure a sustainable future for the lodge, which is used by East Otago High School for school camps and other events.
East Otago High School principal Helen Newcombe said the school would now step down from the trust.
"There was a meeting at the end of May at the school and seven new trustees were appointed," she said.
"There was a good turnout and other people there who were happy to support on a committee but not on the trust.
"It has a better chance for success with this community model, because the people that are passionate about doing it will be doing it, rather than it being an extra job that board representatives have to do," she said.
The Glenorchy Lodge is used for school camps for both year 9 and 10 East Otago students annually, and also hired out to small community groups for educational purposes.
Mrs Newcombe said there was "a lot of passion in the community" to save the lodge and pledges in the "tens of thousands" had already been made.
The decision to change the model to a community trust was to "drive more momentum for more progress", as in the previous model the majority of trust members were supposed to be board sanctioned.
"We looked at how we could change that — with all the extra administration and stuff required for schools, it doesn’t fit within our strategic direction to be managing it.
"The school engaged a lawyer to make a couple of adjustments to the trust agreement that did not change any of the objectives, but was more around the formation of the trust and taking out the requirement for the school to be involved," Mrs Newcombe said.
"It’s obvious that there are so many people that are passionate about it, but now they’ve got to put action into it.
"The objectives for the trust are to benefit outside education for the community, so if the trust is ever wound up, that money would go to the community for that, and if it continues, then that’s the agreement of how the lodge can be used — and there’s nothing to stop us booking it for a school camp at this stage, so it’s not the end."
She was "really hopeful" it would all work out under the new community-funded model.
"This is a sign of how much it means to people, everybody who has lived in the area for awhile or went to school here, they’ve got memories of the lodge.
"If it is going to succeed, it will be more likely under this new model, rather than us doing it," she said.
The new trustees would be meeting soon to discuss an action plan, Mrs Newcombe said.